Expandable shopping bag carrier

ABSTRACT

An expandable shopping bag carrier includes two cylindrical tubes telescoping within one another to expand and contract as needed. At respective outer ends of the carrier are radially extending annuli that serve to retain handles of conventional shopping bags thereon whilst a middle portion of the carrier is grasped by a hand, leveraging the weight of the shopping bags and providing a more ergonomically favorable surface to grasp. The carrier can include advertising and be made of an inexpensive plastic material so as to be suitable for free distribution by stores.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

For many, the shopping is an activity that elicits a favorable attitude, where the shopper takes pleasure in the canvassing of stores in the constant pursuit of bargains. For others, the chore of shopping is a necessary evil to accumulate the many items one needs on a day to day basis. Whether shopping is elicits many different reactions, one universal experience shared by almost all shoppers in the discomfort that can result from lugging purchases from one location to the next, often causing wrist pain, hand fatigue, and other maladies. Shopping bags are typically designed to be grasped individually, but when many different shopping bags each containing various items must be carried at once the above identified problems present themselves. Accordingly, the field of shopping bags is in need of an inexpensive but comforpinle means for carrying one or more shopping bags in a reliable manner

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to an expandable shopping bag carrying device comprising two or more telescoping cylinders that expand and contract as needed. At each respective end of the carrying device is a radially outwardly extending rim or lip that retains the shopping bag on the cylinders and keeps them from slipping off. In a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, an elongate slot extends longitudinally in a first of said cylinders, and a second one of said cylinders includes a pin aligned with and extending through said slot in said first cylinder to limit extension of said telescoping cylinders.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate, by way of example, the features of the invention

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

An understanding of the invention may be realized by reference to the drawings and their description below, in conjunction with the detailed description of the preferred embodiment. However, it is to be understood that the drawings and the detailed description is not intended to limit the invention or its scope to only those embodiments depicted or described, but rather the scope of the invention is to be construed solely by the words of the claims appended hereto.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, elevated perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view, partially in shadow, of the embodiment of FIG. 1 in an extended configuration;

FIG. 4 is a side view, partially in shadow, of the embodiment of FIG. 1 in a contracted configuration;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 1, taken along lines 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 1, taken along lines 6-6 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 1, taken along lines 7-7 of FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 illustrates a first preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein a tubular telescoping carrier member 10 is shown supporting a plurality of shopping bags 15. Each shopping bag includes an elongate handle 20 that may be fashioned from a cord or cable, or alternatively may be formed from part of the bag itself. In either case, when the bags are grasped in the hand of a user the cord or other handle has a tendency to focus the pressure on a small area of the palm, which in turn causes the user to continuously shift positions of the bags in the search for a comforpinle position. Moreover, the user may use different fingers to distribute the weight of the packages, but this also causes a great deal of stress to be placed on the user's hands.

Accordingly, the carrier 10 of the present invention is a tubular member comprised of an outer cylindrical tube 21 and an inner cylindrical tube 22 that cooperate to form a telescoping handle for holding shopping bags. FIGS. 3 and 4 show the carrier 10 in an expanded position to accommodate more packages and a contracted position used with fewer packages, respectively. Each cylinder 21,22 includes a radially outwardly projecting annulus 25 that provides a barrier to keep the bags from slipping off the interlocked tubes. In one of the cylindrical tubes, a longitudinal slot 26 extends substantially from a position just spaced from the annulus 25 to a position just spaced from the end of the tube. The other cylindrical tube includes a peg or pin 28 that rides in the longitudinal slot 26 of the first cylindrical tube to guide the tubes apart and together. While the drawings illustrate an example where the outer tube 21 carries the pin 28 and the inner tube 22 has the slot 26, it is to be understood that the inner tube 22 can have a radially outwardly directed pin 28 that can ride in a slot in the outer tube 22. However, in the illustrated example the pin 28 does not protrude out of the carrier 10 and can jab into the user's hand.

As shown in FIGS. 5-7, the pin 28 is received in the slot 26 as the tubes extend apart. If the tubes are closely fit together, the carrier will not separate inadvertently and the packages can be carried with confidence. The pin 28 can also be used to fix the length of the carrier 10 by including circumferential slots 30 (see FIG. 4) branching off the longitudinal slot 26, such that by rotating the tubes such that the pin 28 is captured by a circumferential slot, the inner tube 22 and outer tube 21 are fixed relative to each other and the carrier will not inadvertently shorten or lengthen.

The cylindrical tubes may be made of a metal such as brass or aluminum, but more preferably the tubes are made from a sturdy but inexpensive plastic that make the cost of manufacturing the device relatively low. With a low cost, the carrier 10 can include advertising or other indicia 32 on an outer surface and distributed by shopping establishments as a form of free enticement to shop.

The method and apparatus for using the apparatus described above is illustrative of the present invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize variations of the above-described methods and apparatus, and such variations should be considered within the scope of the invention. The above described methods and apparatus are not intended to the limiting in any manner, and the scope of the invention should be measured by the words of the appended claims, taken in their ordinary meaning in conjunction with the specification and documents cited therein. 

1. An expandable shopping bag carrier comprising: a pair of cylindrical tubes arranged in a telescoping relationship such that a first tube extends out from and retracts into a second tube; first and second radially outwardly projecting bag retaining annuli disposed at substantially distal edges of said pair of cylindrical tubes; an elongate slot extending longitudinally in a first of said pair of cylindrical tubes, said elongate slot having a first end spaced from said annulus and a second end spaced from a distal end of said first cylindrical tube; and a pin secured to the second of said cylindrical tubes, said pin aligned with and extending through said slot in said first cylindrical tube to limit extension of said telescoping tubes.
 2. The expandable shopping bag carrier of claim 1 further including advertising on an exterior surface of one of said pair of cylindrical tubes.
 3. The expandable shopping bag carrier of claim one wherein said first and second cylindrical tubes are made of plastic.
 4. The expandable shopping bag carrier of claim 1 wherein said first and second cylindrical tubes are sized so that an inner tube does not move freely within an outer tube.
 5. The expandable shopping bag carrier of claim 1 further comprising a circumferential slot branching from said longitudinal slot and sized to retain said pin therein to fix an overall length of said shopping bag carrier. 